Religion

The belief in God (or theism) is the prevailing view in the world. 95% of the world’s 7 billion inhabitants (over 6.5 billion people) believe in at least one god. Approximately 55% are monotheistic (believe in one god), while approximately 40% are either polytheistic (more than one god) or pantheistic (god is everything and everything is god). The remaining 5% are either atheistic (no god) or agnostic (don’t know or don’t care). While we aren’t able to mention every religion on the face of the earth, we will provide basic information on most of the major ones.

Christianity – Although Christianity has its roots in the Torah of Judaism, the origin of Christianity is considered to be the middle of the first century as the apostles began to spread the message of faith in Jesus Christ as God and Messiah throughout the Roman Empire.

Judaism– Having laid the foundation for Christianity, Judaism is the oldest monotheistic religion and has endured for four thousand years of recorded history.

Islam– Founded by their prophet Muhammad around 600 A.D., Islam today is the religion of a reported 1.6 billion worldwide.

Hinduism– Believed to be the oldest of the major modern religions, Hinduism is a polytheistic (many gods) religion with a total of adherents approaching one billion.

Buddhism– With nearly half a billion believers, Buddhists follow the teachings of the Buddha Siddhartha Gautama in the fifth century B.C.

Jainism – An ancient religion from India with 6-7 million followers that emphasizes non-violence, open-mindedness, and non-possessiveness.

Shinto– A polytheistic religion native to Japan dating back to the 6th century B.C. It has no official text and no set theology.

Sikhism– The fifth largest religion in the world. It began in the 15th century in India. It’s a mixture of monotheism (one god) and pantheism (god is everything and everything is god).

Baha’i – A monotheistic religion from 19th century Persia that emphasizes the spiritual unity of all humankind.

Rastafarianism– Began in Jamaica in the 1930s. Rastafarians worship Haile Sellaise I, the former emperor of Ethiopia, and believe that he will lead the righteous into a perfect world called Zion. They reject materialism and sensual pleasures as Babylon, and believe in smoking cannabis as a spiritual experience.

Zoroastrianism– The ancient pre-Islamic religion of Iran that survives there in isolated areas and, more prosperously, in India.